If you want to be inspired by the majestic flight of a bittern and a conservation success story, the time is now. On a visit to Old Moor at present, the question is not, ‘I wonder if we’ll see a bittern?’ but rather ‘I wonder how many times we’ll see a bittern?’
There are of course, no guarantees but with three active bittern nests on the reserve and feeding flights coming thick and fast, you’d have to be really unlucky NOT to see a bittern at least once.
For the best chance, follow these instructions. Take a seat in the ‘Family’ or ‘Bittern’ hides and point your binoculars towards the reedbeds at the back of the bodies of water in front on you. If you’re in the Bittern Hide, look as far away as you can, around the foot of the first pylon you see. If you’re in the Family Hide, look behind the Mere. Slowly scanning left and right is a good idea. Get comfortable, watch and wait.
A flurry of gull activity might give you a clue that a bittern flight is about to happen though sometimes the female bitterns become very good at giving the gulls the slip!
How long will you have to wait? Well, as an illustration, here’s a snippet of a conversation I overheard in the Family Hide today.
Two friends arrived in the hide and sat down. Both raised binoculars, eager to see a bittern. One said to the other, “Shall we just wait until we see a bitt – there’s one!”
He never even got to finish the bird’s name! Excitedly both watched, explaining to the other where the bird was flying from, its direction and calling the markers that it passed. That particular flight lasted nearly a minute though I suspect it’ll last much longer in their memories.
Try it. It’s as near to a dependable bird sighting as you’ll ever get!
Not every big bird flanked by gulls is a bittern of course!
I started at Adwick Washland this morning where the lanes were looking glorious and the avocets busy. There were: mute swan, Canada geese, greylags and one pink-footed goose. With them were: gadwall, mallard, shoveler, tufted duck, grey partridge, pheasant, one cormorant, two grey heron, four little egret, moorhen, coot, twenty-five avocet, lapwing, two ringed plover and nine redshank.
Also present were black-headed gull, woodpigeon, collared dove, one little owl, swift, one green woodpecker, one kestrel, magpie, jackdaw, crow, blue tit, great tit, skylark, swallow, house martin, long-tailed tit, willow warbler, blackcap, whitethroat, sedge warbler, reed warbler, wren, starling, blackbird, song thrush, dunnock, house sparrow, pied wagtail, chaffinch, bullfinch, greenfinch, goldfinch and reed bunting.
A skylark at Adwick today singing from a fence post!
Next to Edderthorpe Flash where the sunshine made for some difficult identifications. Nevertheless there were: mute swan, Canada geese, one shelduck, gadwall, mallard, one cormorant, one buzzard, moorhen, coot, lapwing, one little ringed plover, two bar-tailed godwit, black-headed gull, lesser black-backed gull, herring gull, one green woodpecker, magpie, jackdaw, crow, willow warbler, wren, chaffinch and goldfinch.
A lesser black-backed gull cooling itself on another hot day
Finally, to Old Moor itself. As well as those bitterns, today watchers saw: mute swan, greylag, Canada geese, two shelduck, gadwall, one teal, shoveler, pochard, tufted duck, pheasant, six cormorant, one grey heron, three great crested grebe, two Mediterranean gulls, one buzzard, moorhen, coot, five avocet, two oystercatcher, lapwing and one redshank.
A buzzard being 'shown the door' over the Field Pool today
There were also: four common tern, black-headed gull, lesser black-backed gull, herring gull, stock dove, woodpigeon, swift, kestrel, magpie, jackdaw, crow, great tit, sand martin, house martin, willow warbler, reed warbler, wren, starling, blackbird, robin, tree sparrow, bullfinch, goldfinch and reed bunting.
Just after the Visitor Centre closed this afternoon, at 17:10, a cuckoo flew over the courtyard heading in the direction of Broomhill. If you are over that way later, listen out for it.
Oh alright, a shamelessly crowd-pleasing shot it is! This one’s called ‘Ryan’
And that’s about it for this evening and – from me at least – for a few days. I shall leave you in the capable hands of Karen and Nicola while I re-charge my batteries.
Until next time.